Hi Im a subscriber from cape town.Can someone (Liski) please find out what is happening with Alphasat.Today they only showed half an hour of al tsantiri news usually 2 hour show.And please dont refer me to the channel as I pay UBI for the service not alpha.This is not the first time this has happened regarding that particular show.Also is Ant1 Pacific/satellite ever gonna become available on the UBI platform or the greek skai?

Hello Hellasafrica,

Looks like it is worse for us here in Australia. Alter has been taken off-air, and been taken over by some 'Ellas+". They are showing the programs here in Australia according to Greek times.... When these used to be live, Makis was on in the morning for us... now it's on at midnight. Aftias instead of the afternoon, is being shown the next morning.......... Hatzinikolaou and Tragas the next evening (Australia time! :O).

Hardavelas on Sundays was gradually taken off live streaming and we were given programs from last year.... Papadopoulos (the forensic guy) was also taken off live. Nikolouli has also been stuffed around. So we're getting endless re-runs of Anita Pania................... :x

The funny thing is, now that the elections were on in Greece, Alter is "experiencing technical difficulties"... more like that they will look foolish to run the electioneering program line-up (in a supposedly live manner.....) when even those in Greece have already forgotten about the elections!

The whole situation would be laughable if we weren't paying Ubi.

I also hate it how Lazopoulos was taken off its live run on Wednesday mornings and are only getting the re-run, sometimes a few weeks later.... :x

Why was Sigma taken off the line-up?

Don't get me started on the debacle that is Star.

I've called them up for all these issues, "take it up with Greece" they say. "Nah, nah, this is your own creation" I reply. But nothing ever gets fixed.

--Edit--

Oops! Forgot to add to the last paragraph, that I actually have to the respective stations in the past, but they don't reply either. :x

I just called Alpha in Greece,they referred me back to UBI.In SA we've also lost Sigma RIK sat and 4E over the last year or so with no replacement channels yet subscription costs have remained at $60 US.I would appreciate a reply from someone at UBI as to what is going on.Also please add Ant1 to the package as they have a lot of the Greek super league games.Im considering getting a slingbox and hooking it up to nova in Greece that way i can get all the channels in their original formats especially greek football which nova also broadcast in HD.

Yeah I hate what they have done with Alter also all the good shows are now on when we are at work during the day or on very late at night, its total BS I wish they would of left Alter alone and put Ellas+ on another channel slot on its own dont know why they had to touch Alter pisses me off!

I think Sigma was taken off air cause it stopped broadcasting on satellite over Europe so there was no signal to use for UBI to bring it to Australia.

One more thing, other language pack which also have these inhouse mixed channels like ANA and Vizyon are in there own channel slot and didt lose another channel in there package to have these channels yet us greek lose Alter to have Ellas+ just doesn't make sence leave Alter how it was and put Ellas+ in another channel on its own... !!

hellasafrica,

The Alpha channel is produced by Alpha for UBI. It is not produced or altered by UBI. It is simply picked up from Europe and retransmitted to Africa, Asia, Australia and New Zealand. UBI doesn't have any say in the schedule or changes to the schedule.

RIK Sat was always a Free To Air channel and never tied to the subscription fee. RIK Sat and UBI's distribution agreement came to an end and hence RIK Sat became no longer available Free To Air or encrypted in your region.

As mentioned by Lazer, Sigma ceased to transmit an international channel in March/April 2008 and as such is no longer available outside of Cyprus.

The costs associated with broadcasting over Asia & Africa have increased over the years. We had to tweak the line-up (such as the removal of 4E) in order to maintain the subscription fee at an affordable level. The Arabic line-up also had a major reshuffle and the Turkish subscription service was removed.

There is no information regarding Ant1 or Skai Television being shown in your region or on any UBI platform.

If you have any further questions regarding the UBI World TV Service in Afirca kindly email them to africa@ubiworldtv.com


Regards,
Liski

Alpha Sat are at it again.Today they also only showed half (aprox 1h10 mins)of Al Tsantiri news.For me that is the only worthwhile program on the channel and lately they dont show the whole program.Also while they repeat their other ribbish shows such as kous kous,mes stin kali hara etc ad nauseum Al Tsantiri News is shown only once and most times not in its entirety.I have contacted Alpha in Greece and they say talk to UBI.UBI via Liski on this forum claim thats the way the receive the channel from Alpha in Greece.I Pay UBI $60 US a month for a service consisting of 5 tv channels and a few Radio stations an exhorbitant amount by any standard.Thus i feel its their duty to contact Alpha and sort out this problem.

Liski, you wrote:



That is not what I was told, when I called to complain not long after the cessation of Sigma. I was told that Sigma were requiring higher transmission rates, and that Ubi allegedly said that they would not want to pass this price increase onto their customers. Who are we supposed to believe?!

Of late, Ubi has been leaving me with a VERY SOUR taste in my mouth. As the above paragraph shows, as a customer, I simply cannot trust anything that you guys either write or say to me over the phone.

I called Ubi over both Al-Tsantiri News and over the state of this stupid Ellas+ saga. I do not get any satisfactory answers. I just keep get lied to.

AND we HAVE TO pay 48 hours earlier even though the contract is to be from 28 days (February minimums) to 31 days, depending on the month. I mean what company does that?! And why? Are we the one's not to be trusted, especially after the Tarbs episode? lol.......

So here I am calling up the customer service centre and instead of the bloke listening to what I am saying over the stupidity of the Ellas+ program line-up, he sits there freaking laughing at me. He only shut up somewhat when I told him that I lost approximately $700 over the Tarbs disaster.

I complained about how we were being d***ed around with Al-Tsantiri. (no answer)

I complained about the squalid state of affairs of Star. (no answer)

I complained over the state of affairs for what was THE best station, Alter, and how it has been changed to Ellas+. Where we got to watch a live morning (Greek time) program, beautifully in the afternoon, but now have to watch it with some FIFTEEN hours delay! The news are being watched at near 24 hours delay! You feel stupid watching the principality elections (ballot room stuff) after one day. Does Alter know of this change to their intellectual property? I remember when Ellas+ first appeared, it was touted as a "Greek-Australian Production", even though I could find no information on this consortium. Yet now, it is displayed as "A UBI Production". LOL... Programs are now being cut in half, we are watching ENDLESSSSSSSSSSS replays of gossip shows, and there is absolutely NO_LIVE_CONTENT. I feel punching in my television each time I have to see Anita Pania. And what has happened Kosta Hardavellas' Sunday program?! Instead of showing that, you show us bloody Pania again! And why is Papadopoulos' Apotipomata being replayed for four consecutive times! Why is tonight's news on Alter older news?! And it will probably be cut off half-way anyway!

I suggested that Ellas+ stay as is, if it's really that important to them, but that they should move Alter back to the live feed in another slot. "Yes, you're right" was the reply. I call BS.

Oh, and Hellasafrica, I wouldn't believe Ubi's line that this all depends on the Greek stations. No way. The other week, I had left it on Alter (I refuse to call it Ellas+) in the hope that they forget to show the usual BS line up, and forget about Pania; lo and behold, Hardavellas' "Pyles tou Anexigitou" played for a whole few seconds before they remembered that they need to change it back to Pania. So it was a mistake on Ubi's part not Alter's. The same thing with Lazopoulos. It is not Alpha, but Ubi that is rigging it. They seem to think that we all WANT to watch Kous Kous, Lifestyle and all that other crap over and over and over again.

Ubi ran a slickish company until recently, but they're really on the way down. Behaving like corporatists and the such, is really beginning to rile me; as I told the customer "serviceman" (for he was no customer service person... one who sits there laughing at your complaints really needs to be given the flick from the company, but I fear he is the image of Ubi at the moment....) after New Year's I may be dropping the service altogether if things don't come on back the way they used to be.

The whole thing was better when Ubi/Tarbs was not around, and we could watch these Free-to-Air.

I'm sorry Hellasafrica, for using your thread to vent my anger.

Bodie_CI5,

"Higher Transmission Costs" was never related to Sigma. If you search the forum history you will see that the Cyprian satellite pay TV service, Athina Sat, which was uplinking Sigma closed down and that meant that Sigma was no longer available on satellite.

You can even see on Lyngsat that Sigma is no longer available on any other satellite.

I don't see how you are being "lied" to regarding Al-Tsantiri News on Alpha. I have already advised you that UBI doesn't produce Alpha TV. The feedback re Al-Tsantiri News has already been forwarded to the relevant department.

No Customer Service Rep would "laugh" at you over the phone when you are giving feedback regarding programming.

TARBS was 2004 - people had enough opportunity to get any money that was owed as "Goodwill Gesture Credit" with UBI.

If you want please Private Message me your Customer ID and contact number so that I can personally look into your situation.

Be the way, prior to TARBS or UBI there was only ever ERT World available in Australia so your last remark isn't valid.


Regards,
Liski

Liski,

(With apologies again to Hellasafrica)

That is what I was told a few weeks after Sigma's cessation. I've no reason to lie. I am incredibly pee'd off with Ubi; yes. But I will not engage in agit prop for the sake of it. That is what was said to me, that is what I am writing here (as far as I can recall, it was in the same phone call I made when I decided to cancel my Setanta service.) This is why I say that we are being lied to; how can I be receiving two sets of differing reasons? How can Hellasafrica be receiving two sets of differing reasons when he has contacted both Ubi and Alpha as to why Al-Tsantiri keeps on getting interrupted?

I am still not convinced re Al-Tsantiri news. It would be easier for you (not you, personally) to have it on a Sunday night than on a Wednesday morning (Australian time) as you can get around the more restricted content that the show contains.

I sincerely hope that logs of the conversations are kept on file. I had made my latest complaint phone call last week, so you could hear it for yourself. I'm an idiot, I should have written his name down and PM'd it to you. He laughed twice, and I asked him why he was laughing. That just got me incensed further.

re the credit gesture thing. I was never told anything about that, even though I had stated that I had been a brief member with Tarbs.

re your last point, I am afraid you are off. We used to have one of the big dishes (cost $2,600 to set up) and we had the other channels. The Greek-Australian newspaper "Neos Kosmos" had been warning the Greek-Australian community not to jump on the Tarbs and "Ta Nea" (the rival Greek-Australian newspaper in Melbourne) bandwagon, as those of us who had forked out the incredible sums of money would lose reception access to those stations. Which is what happened to me.

Oh, and please tell your techies not to put on older news and then throw on Friday's Zougla on a Monday night. And please tell them to bring Hardavellas' "Pyles tou Anexigitou" on again.

Sending you my customer ID and phone number now.

Thanks, and again I apologise, Hellasfrica.

The whole Ellas+/Alter thing needs to be overhauled it just isn't working everyone I talk to agress to bring Alter back the way it was, things are just being delayed way to long like news etc with such a big delay whats the point in watching it?....

I have been saying since the first day they done this change to bring back Alter it goes on deaf ears so can't be bothered anymore.

On another point when my mum called to complain about Ellas/Alter she also got a person laughing at her luckily my mother is an easy going person and did't bother her but the operators should take on there customers concerns more seriously IMO and not just take everything they say as joke.

We would join someone else if there was a choice but my mother and grandparents (we pay for 2 subscriptions) likes these channels and we couldt just handle having Ant1 only as that is the only other option. Hopefully UBI listen and bring back Alter.

I remember also when the channels where on C-Band on Thaicom 3 A-Skai, Mega and Ant1 were all once FTA but they were there for one reason to promote there channels and get companies like TARBS to buy the rights etc and sell them these greek channels never do something for nothing.

I haven't watched Al Satiri News for a while now its on at the wrong time and diffulcult to watch when it used to be on Saturday nights was good but now its on some weird hour and never get a chance to watch it.

End of Rant

I will not be posting anymore regarding this topic as I believe I have explained the situations regarding the issues mentioned.

Re Sigma:

Sigma ceased being available on satellite in March/April 2008 due to the closure of Athina Sat and hence no broadcast outside of Cyprus was possible.

Re Alpha TV:

I will say it one last time to make sure it's clearly understood. UBI does not produce or edit Alpha TV. It is picked up from Alpha TV and transmitted directly over Asia, Africa, Australia & New Zealand.

Re Ellas+:

All feedback either from this forum, Facebook, or any other medium has been and continues to be forwarded to the relevant department for further enhancement of the channel. Ellas+ is the only locally produced Greek channel by UBI. As mentioned, all the other channels are not edited or produced by UBI.

Not everything in life is a conspiracy as most people believe. I hope that people can understand and accept that the information that has been provided be me on this forum is always accurate when it comes to the UBI side of things as I have no reason to lie. I have always made sure that everything that I post is accurate and has been since my first post back in 2004.

Bodie_CI5 I have received your PM and will endeavour to contact you with some feedback regarding Alpha's scheduling of Al Tsantiri News.


Regards,
Liski

Liski,

Thanks for your assistance re the PM issue.

However, this is a little heavy handed:

"I will not be posting anymore regarding this topic as I believe I have explained the situations regarding the issues mentioned."

This is not fair to the original poster of this thread. If you wish to not reply to me any further in this thread, no problem. But Hellasafrica may have further queries or information and may wish to impart them in this forum. It would not be fair to him should you not desire to reply any more. Especially since I have hijacked the thread.

Furthermore, you write:

"Not everything in life is a conspiracy as most people believe."

I am not being conspiratorial, as far as I am able to see things from my vantage point, I am being most logical. Especially since I pay 70AUD per month, and feel (as I know others feel whom I know that have Greek Ubi) that not only am I not getting my money's worth, but am getting the run around from both customer service and from management policy at Ubi over Alter and Al-Tsantiri.

This point is way off:

"I hope that people can understand and accept that the information that has been provided be me on this forum is always accurate when it comes to the UBI side of things as I have no reason to lie. I have always made sure that everything that I post is accurate and has been since my first post back in 2004."

As the rep for Ubi on this forum, you are at the other end of our frustrations. When I talked of lies, I most certainly did not aim that at you personally. If you think, or feel, that I have, I apologise publicly; but I most certainly did not intend to do so. Your replies insofar as they are the information of Ubi, are Ubi's and not yours (or you personally), and it is the information and the end-product, which I feel to be inferior than what it was until a few months ago, that I am taking umbrage with.

Again, I reiterate, my attacks are not directed at your personally, in any sense. They are only aimed at what I see as a theft of sorts, of Alter's service (in terms of live content) and the conflicting information that is coming out of Ubi.

Over the Alpha thing, esp. Al-Tsantiri, I really don't think that we, the consumer should be the ones negotiating a programmatic line-up. Since Ubi have acquired the rights to transmit to your end-user, negotiations should be held at the management level, and not at the consumer level (besides, when a Ubi customer service lady told me to cintact the station directly some monnths ago, I emailed them with no reply - we simply do not have the clout that an organisation does).

Thank you, Lazer, re the laughing issue. Sad to see I wasn't the only one. I have never been laughed at from any other Ubi rep, truth be told. But this event last week, really has me irked. I, too, know of a couple of families that aren't too happy with the Alter situation. They've adopted a wait and see posture.

Again, thanks Liski for endeavouring to assist me; but, please, do not cease to reply in this thread on my account. This stance is simply not fair to Hellasafrica; who is the original poster of this thread, and who should be the one we all should be expending the more energy on.

I understand that UBI does'nt produce the Alpha Sat channel but as they are the distributor and I pay them for the service which by the way we in SA have to pay for 6 months in advance I expect UBI to liase with them and sort out the Al Tsantiri News debacle.By reading some replies on this thread I see im not the only one.

I have been a subcriber since the TARBS days.Liski as I raised the issue of alphasat/al tsantiri i would appreciate feedback on this forum and not a PM to Bodie C 15.

On a positive note we African subcribers still receive Alter and not Ellas +.I cant comment on Ellas+ because i have never seen it.

Bodie C15 I dont feel u ve hijacked this thread and its good to hear other peoples opinions of UBI s service.I must also mention that UBI did credit me for the months I had outstanding when TARBS went under.

Also UBI mention that they have no plans to add ANT 1 but they should seriously look into it since ANT 1 are the no 1 sometimes no 2 channel in greece and UBI have not added any new channels to the greek package for years while other packages seem to be constantly getting new channels.Ant 1 Sat/Pacific also have the rights to a lot of greek Superleague games.I understand that in Australia its available on other platforms but its not available at all in Africa.

Another service I feel that should be provided is a electronic program guide.Not sure if Australian subscribers have access to one but we in Africa do not.

As far as Sigma and Rik go they are no longer available for whatever reason and we have to live with it.

Al Tsantiri is on a break now till february so i hope between now and then UBI will contact Alpha and sort this problem out.

Looking forward to watching the proper full episodes of the show and if possible on alive feed ie tues night greek time.

With thanks to all for your replies and help.

There is no EPG here either, we just use the tv guides off the UBI website. Only a small select amount of channels have a EPG but none are greek ones.

The problem is that the guides on the website apart from mega are not always updated timeously.